Pumpkin

It started Wednesday morning, 5:30am, Cardio Drill class. The instructor for this class is tiny, blond and a kick butt instructor. She makes me sweat and I love her for it. After class as we were putting away our mats from doing planks and various other abdominal assaults, she mentioned that she was taking her little ones to the pumpkin patch that day."I thought that would be a autumn thing to do", she said.

My mind immediately went to having little ones and how excited they would get when we went to the pumpkin patch. I was seeing chubby checks, red noses from cold, diaper bums, sippy cups and blankies.

Little ones. Little ones at a pumpkin patch. Pumpkins.  Mmmmm..... pumpkin bars, pumpkin pie, pumpkin scones. Pumpkin!

So I bought a pie pumpkin and decided to have my own pumpkin experience.

I had to call my friend Lynn for a quick pumpkin preparation reminder. How hot of an oven? How long? How much water?

In the sweet way that Lynn has, she once again answered my questions. This is an annual event for us. I have a difficult time remembering things.

So, oven at 350, bake for 45 minutes, set the pumpkins upside down (after you halved them and cleaned them out) on a cookie sheet and just put enough water on the sheet so it touches the rind.

 Scoop out the goods.

Put them in a blender with a tiny bit of water and puree.

Put into bags and freeze.

Save one bag.

Make these yummy pumpkin spice scones with a spinach and cheese Farmers casserole on a weekend when the men of the house have gone off to Chicago to watch a baseball game, and eat them with your two sweet girls who once had chubby cheeks, cute diaper bums, sippy cups and blankies. They've traded them in for car keys, college acceptance letters, homecoming dresses and lovely, sweet, fierce and wonderful personalities.

It may not be a trip to the pumpkin patch with little ones but it worked for me.